Matty Rich

Despite some critics' charges that "Straight" was perhaps crude or simplistic, few denied its power or basic sincerity in portraying a world Rich knew intimately. The same did not apply to Rich's second feature, the Disney-sponsored "The Inkwell" (1994), a story set in the black upper middle-class milieu of the 1970s. Conflicts consequently arose between Rich and novelist-turned-screenwriter Trey Ellis. Some of the mixed reviews seemed to suggest that the tale of a confused youth sent to spend the summer with wealthy relatives in Martha's Vineyard uncomfortably mirrored the inexperienced Rich's travails in Hollywood.